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Investigation Continues – Complications and Possibilities

SEARCH FOR JUSTICE

By Jennie Jones Giles Saturday (July 22, 2006) marked exactly 40 years since the bodies of Charles Glass, Vernon Shipman and Louise Davis Shumate were found in a clearing near the Lake Summit dam. Over those four decades, plenty of investigators have spent time and energy trying to figure out who did it, and family members have wondered if anyone will ever be brought to justice, or at least named as the murderer. “I would love to see this solved,” said Linda Shirlin of Asheville, Shumate’s niece. “My aunt (Louise’s sister) and I made phone calls all over the country for years trying to get answers. The entire family is so disappointed that they haven’t done anything on this. I was hoping somebody on their death bed would confess. Daddy wanted it solved, but he didn’t get to live to see it solved.” A co-worker who knew Shipman and Glass also expressed hope for a new look at the case. “This was just so weird, that something like this could happen in this town,” said Lynn Martin Blackwell. “Why can’t somebody probe and find out what happened?”

‘Comedy of errors’

A variety of factors hindered the investigation, starting with inexperience and lack of training and modern technology of the local law officers. The heat and summer storms had already damaged the crime scene and degraded the evidence (the bodies had been there five days), and a herd of investigators compromised it further. “The basic training and all the forensic sciences used nowadays didn’t exist in those days,” said retired Hendersonville Police Chief Bill Powers. WNC Tribune editor John Sholar, who spent a lot of time reporting the big story, wrote a memo to the Associated Press outlining problems, ending with a wry editorial comment: “Further confusion furnished upon request.” “The investigation,” added former Asheville Citizen-Times reporter Lewis Green, “was a comedy of errors.”

Politics impede the case

Political rivalries undercut the continuity needed to stick with a case. Paul Hill, who was sheriff when the murders happened, was turned out of office in the November 1966 election, in part because of public frustration over the unsolved case. The next year, commissioners appointed attorney Harley Stepp as a special prosecutor. “It was a big issue here,” Stepp said. “The commissioners were concerned because the investigation was not moving forward.” Solicitor Leonard Lowe told Stepp there never was enough evidence to indict anyone for the murders. “The investigation was garbled from the beginning,” Stepp said. “The evidence and files were scattered.” A prevalent rumor was that some things were destroyed rather than letting the next administration have the evidence. “They should have focused on solving the crime,” Stepp said. “It’s probably the coldest trail in America.”

Sources clammed up

The fact Shipman and Glass were homosexual complicated the investigation. Men in the gay community feared being identified as gay, and avoided police interviews or claimed to know nothing. And the same was true of those who had attended Glass’ famously exotic parties. Forty years later, many local people who knew the men would speak to the Times-News only without using their names; others would not talk at all. Prejudice may have resulted in a waste of time and energy. Investigators first looked at black migrant camps for suspects because Shipman’s car was found near a black migrant camp. Glass had a black rhythm and blues singer as a houseguest and sold charms and hexes to members of the black community.

‘Just hush it up’

Over time, detectives got tired of the case, or moved on to more pressing crimes. “It got to the point that investigators were saying, let’s just hush it up,” said retired Buncombe County deputy John Harrison. “It got to the point where it was more of a disgrace than a homicide.” But it was a homicide. Three people were dead. Each had family members, friends and coworkers who cared. Shipman’s and Glass’ fathers went to their graves without knowing who killed their sons. Shumate’s sisters and brothers never saw justice for the murder of their sibling. “It’s been 40 years and it’s time the truth and facts were told instead of all the rumors,” said Calvert Hunt Jr., one of the last people to see the victims alive. “As is often the case concerning the savaging of one human being by another, far too little time is devoted to the victim.” Eddie Shipman, cousin of Vernon Shipman, still hopes for some resolution. “Every time a sheriff gets elected I mention it to him,” he said. “Let’s get active and put an end to it. People are dead and there is a lack of evidence. Let’s dig down deep. I keep hoping for a deathbed confession. I keep wondering, is someone still walking around who was intimately involved with these murders.” Many investigators agree that the case deserves to be examined even now. “I wish someone would come forward and tell something,” said former Henderson County chief deputy Neal Grissom. “I keep hanging on the hope something’s going to break.” “Our family has lived with that murder for 40 years,” said Grissom’s son, David. “Everybody has a right to life. Somebody should be brought to trial or, if they are dead, put a name to it. That would bring closure to a lot of people in this county.” “All I want to do is for people to be satisfied that the killer is known,” Neal Grissom said. “I did the investigation to the best of my ability. I hope, trust and pray that some day we will know.” At age 90, Grissom still has the lawman’s hunger for justice. “I hope it happens before I leave this world,” he said. “I’d love to see it end before I die.”

By Jennie Jones Giles The Hendersonville Times-News started a reward fund shortly after the murders for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the murderer. It was at the former Northwestern Bank. Over the years, the bank merged with other financial institutions – First Union, Sun Trust and Wachovia. The three-person committee picked to oversee the money consisted of Sheriff Paul Z. Hill, Hendersonville Police Chief Bill Powers and SBI agent Gary Satterfield. Powers said the committee never met and he has no idea what happened to the money that was contributed. Bank officials cannot locate a trust fund. Without knowing the account number or a person’s name in charge of the account, it is difficult to search the records. The fund could have been returned to the state Treasury Department as unclaimed money. In 1970, the reward was for more than $4,000. Of the money, $1,300 was set aside for arrest and conviction. The remainder of the money did not require conviction. Contributors: • $200 – Greater Hendersonville Chamber of Commerce • $100 – True Detective magazine • $800 – Shumate estate • $300 – Shumate’s brother • $2,000 – John Sholar, editor of WNC Tribune • Contributions from the Hendersonville Times-News, WHKP radio, Henderson County Board of Commissioners, Hendersonville City Council, anonymous donor. Members of the Chamber of Commerce contributed “in hopes that this fund may be beneficial to law enforcement officials investigating this crime which has blighted this community.” “The solution of this crime is of vital concern to the whole community,” Mayor A.V. Edwards told the newspaper. “The reward is being offered in hopes it will be of assistance to officers investigating the crime,” County Commission Chairman Clyde Jackson added.

By Jennie Jones Giles Short of new testing of the physical evidence, the only other way of establishing the most likely suspect in the triple slaying and bringing closure for the victims’ families and the community, would be a FBI profile. A profile could be used to compare the suspects, ruling some in and some out. The Times-News contacted the FBI. “FBI profilers only offer these services to the law enforcement community who request our assistance in a criminal investigation,” said special agent Ann Todd at the FBI Laboratory in Washington. “I wouldn’t be opposed to asking, if for nothing else to see if any suspects match,” said Hendersonville Police Chief Donnie Parks. It is not known if the case would need to be officially reopened to request this help with the case. It is technically a Sheriff’s Department case. But the Police Department was the first investigating agency, as the case began as a missing persons’ report in the city. Shipman’s car was found abandoned in the city. During the first eight years of the investigation, the police and county investigators worked the case together. An FBI investigator with more than 30 years experience working on some of the nation’s most violent crimes took a look at information pertaining to the murders. He requested the Times-News not publish his name, as he reviewed the file unofficially. “The murderer was most likely a local individual who knew the area well,” he said. “The victims knew their attacker and it was someone who dislikes women.” There is a group of retired and active FBI profilers who will review a case, reporting their findings only to law enforcement. The Academy Group was founded by Dr. Roger L. Depue, former chief of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI National Academy at Quantico, Va. All members of the group, who charge a fee for their services, are former FBI and U.S. Secret Service Supervisory special agents who played a major role in the creation of the FBI’s National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime. The FBI Behavioral Science Unit was made famous by the movie Silence of the Lambs and the book Red Dragon by Tom Harris. The profilers guide organizations through the maze of problems centered around, influenced or caused by aberrant behavior. “Regardless of the type of case, the basis of our work is understanding the behavior which motivates an individual to act in a deviant, threatening and/or malicious way,” said Martin Rehburg, with the academy group. Former FBI Supervisory Special Agent Steve Mardigian has discussed the case with the Times-News. The Academy Group will review the case, reporting back to local law enforcement. Mardigian said the profile will offer three analysis: motivation, whether the crime could be stranger-related and a profile to compare against the suspect list. “If we look at this case, we’re serious,” he said. “We want to solve it.” The cost for this is estimated at $5,000 to $10,000, depending on whether physical evidence can be found for new testing and whether a trip to the local area might be necessary. In addition to more than 30 years helping solve some of the most violent crimes in the nation, Mardigian has lectured extensively within the United States and abroad concerning violent crime assessment, interview and interrogation tactics, subject motivation, offender characterization and threat assessment. He has also provided expert witness testimony on decisive crime analysis issues in state criminal trials. Typically, the law enforcement agencies interested in the case and the district attorney’s office pay for the group’s services. No local agency contacted by the Times-News has agreed to pay for such a review.

By Jennie Jones Giles With the new technologies and DNA testing today, the evidence from the crime scene might yield new clues or, at the least, put a name to the person who brutally killed three people July 17, 1966. Problem: The crime scene evidence has disappeared. Gary Satterfield, the lead SBI investigator at the scene, said he collected all the physical evidence and drove it to the SBI lab in Raleigh. “I put a lot of time and effort in that case,” Satterfield said. “All the evidence was taken by me to Raleigh. I even sent in all my film of the scene.” The evidence was kept by the SBI in Raleigh until July 14, 1969, when boxes containing the most important evidence in the triple murder were given to Henderson County Sheriff James Kilpatrick. There were three boxes. One contained the bumper jacks retrieved from the cars of Shipman and Shumate, and the shaft found at the scene, most likely the murder weapon. Another box, which must be long, contained Glass’ crutches and the frog gig obtained from a suspect’s house, which might possibly have made the puncture wounds on Glass and Shumate. The third box contained the rest of the items collected at the scene – clothing, watches, wallets, a liquor bottle and piece of scrap iron. The items in this box were placed in separate paper bags. Retired SBI agent Charles Chambers brought the boxes to Hendersonville. Sheriff Kilpatrick and a deputy were standing on the sidewalk outside the sheriff’s office at the Historic Courthouse, he said. An SBI document in investigative files contains the signatures of Kilpatrick and Chambers stating the physical evidence was returned to the county on that date. “I remember taking the boxes over there and giving them to Kilpatrick and a deputy,” said retired SBI agent Charles Chambers. “I wanted to keep the evidence, but they (supervisors) decided to turn it over to the Sheriff’s Department. “It just about broke my heart,” Chambers said. “P.R. Kitchen (supervisor) said, ‘Charlie, face reality, it’s their case.’ I gave it to them.” No one interviewed by the Times-News for this series has seen the evidence since that day in 1969. Kilpatrick is deceased, along with several of his deputies. Kilpatrick’s family members and deputies who were contacted say they never saw the boxes. Kilpatrick said he did not keep some things at the Sheriff’s Department because he didn’t consider it safe there, said a source close to Kilpatrick. Former Buncombe County detective Jim Harrison said Kilpatrick told him that he had received the physical evidence. “I told him he better make sure where it is and suggested a bank vault,” Harrison said. “He said, ‘I have it in a safe place.’ I can’t believe anyone who wound up with that stuff would not realize how valuable it is.” Brian Brown, son of the late Garland Brown who investigated the murders under Sheriff Paul Z. Hill and later under Sheriff Ab Jackson, said when Jackson replaced Kilpatrick there were no investigative files or evidence at the Sheriff’s Department.

Nothing left

Retired Henderson County Sheriff George Erwin said as far as he knows the Sheriff’s Department never received any physical evidence from the Kilpatrick administration. The physical evidence was never under the control of the court, said Henderson County Clerk of Court Tommy Thompson. “When the move was made into the new courthouse, there was nothing left anywhere in places that I had access to,” Thompson said. If the boxes of evidence could be located, what might new tests reveal? Former Henderson County Sheriff’s chief deputy Neal Grissom wants the Hendersonville Police Department, Henderson County Sheriff’s Department and SBI to reopen the case and test the evidence, if it can be found, with new technologies. “A DNA test is the only thing I need to absolutely solve this,” the 90-year-old Grissom said. “We need DNA tests bad.” “If Shumate was sexually assaulted, even with today’s standards, DNA evidence would not be useful,” retired SBI agent Steve Miller said. Because the bodies decomposed for five days in the summer heat, DNA samples would be of little value. “DNA testing is too expensive,” said former SBI agent and Henderson County detective Ned Whitmire. “It would be of no benefit if the suspect is dead. You can’t prosecute a dead man. If the evidence is not stored and collected properly, it’s useless.”

Microscopic exam

The physical evidence was in sealed boxes. On the outside of the box is an SBI agent’s case number. If the evidence is still intact and has not been tampered with or touched, there are still tests that could be performed. “This murder could have been solved today with new technology,” said retired Henderson County Sheriff’s detective Sandy Jackson. “They could have tested hair and fibers and could have solved it. Then, they didn’t have that technology.” There was degradation of the evidence at the scene, but there is still a chance something could be learned to help identify a killer. “You could still have microscopic examination of all the victims’ clothing,” said Hendersonville Police Capt. John Nicholson. “You could check the liquor bottle for DNA and latents (fingerprints), the bumper jack for latents and microscopic evidence and the crutches for latents.” “Also, I would re-submit the frog gig for examination, as testing is more refined and, if not degraded badly, might have evidential value,” Nicholson said. Today, there is new technology not available 40 years ago to find fingerprints: conventional dusting with powder, use of a laser and a super-glue process. There is a process available today of finding latent fingerprints on the outside of a car. The product, small particle reagent, can be used to find prints, even if the car gets wet. “Also, we would now vacuum the inside of the car for microscopic evidence such as hairs and fibers,” Nicholson said, “and do comparisons on the hairs with that of the victims to eliminate theirs from any possible suspect hairs.” “Any cigarettes found in either car could be examined for latents and have DNA testing done to check against the known victims,” Nicholson said. “Any unknown sample could be a possible suspect.” There were latent fingerprints found on the rear-view mirror of Shipman’s car. Several suspects’ prints were compared to these prints. None were a match. Today, the fingerprints could be searched through state and national databases for a possible match. It is not known from investigative files whether Shipman’s or Glass’ prints were ever compared to these fingerprints. Also, no investigator has ever compared the latent fingerprints to the prints of the four young men who took Shipman’s car for a joy ride after discovering it abandoned. “If this crime was committed today,” Nicholson said, “it could have been solved within a reasonable amount of time.”

By Jennie Jones Giles Many questions remain about the triple murders 40 years hence, but investigators actually agree on several key factors. Some investigators believe Shumate was an innocent victim, in the wrong place at the wrong time. Others disagree. A witness who knows the connection between Shumate and either or both Shipman and Glass could be of great help to investigators. There is information that suggests Shumate did know the other victims, but more proof is needed. Based on the facts of the case, there are points on which all investigators agree.. The victims were killed by brutal blows to the head. The only mutilation was the puncture wounds on Glass and Shumate. Shumate suffered the worst treatment and was sexually violated using the shaft of a bumper jack. This shaft was most likely the murder weapon.. The murders were committed between about 7 and 8:15 p.m. Sunday, July 17. The last witness saw the victims alive in Shipman’s car about 6:30 p.m. The car was found abandoned before dark in Hendersonville.. The murders were committed where the bodies were found. “The timeline is too tight for the victims to have been murdered somewhere else and then transported to the Lake Summit site,” said Hendersonville Police Capt. John Nicholson. “Transportation of the victims after the murder would have created additional risk of being caught.” The murder scene at the lake was remote and less likely to be witnessed, he said. No other murder scene has been identified. “Rumors and speculation as to the Cheves Cottages location have always been dispelled by forensic testing,” Nicholson said.. The murders were committed by a single individual. “If there was more than one person, someone’s going to talk,” said retired Hendersonville Police Chief Bill Powers. Some have speculated that there had to be more than one killer because the three victims were killed by beating, and not by a gun. Investigators say that’s not so. Shipman and Glass had both been drinking. Glass was on crutches because of a broken leg. Shumate was 61 years old. Nicholson described how one person could have committed the murders: “If all three were walking in a line in front of the suspect in the following order – Shipman, Glass and Shumate – it would be easy for the suspect to strike Shipman from behind on the right side of the head, causing right temporal damage as indicated in the autopsy reports. The suspect would more than likely be right handed. After Shipman was struck, Glass and Shumate would most likely turn around to see what happened. Glass, facing the suspect, would be struck on the left side of the head. “Glass and Shumate would have been the least threat to the suspect and the easiest for him to overcome. The last person to be killed was Shumate. From her injuries, I believe she probably attempted to flee, was caught and dragged back a few feet and then struck by her assailant, causing temporal damage to the left side of her head, as with Glass. From Shumate’s injuries, I believe she put up a struggle.”

By Jennie Jones Giles The Hendersonville Police Department has started the first steps in an attempt to solve a 40-year-old murder mystery. (September 2006) Forms for the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program are being filled out on each of the victims in the unsolved triple murder of 1966. When completed, the forms will be sent to the SBI and then to the FBI’s National Center for Analysis of Violent Crime. The owner and manager of the Tempo Music Shop on Main Street, Charles Glass, 36, and Vernon Shipman, 43, both of Hendersonville, along with a woman, Louise Davis Shumate of Asheville, were brutally murdered July 17, 1966. Their bodies were found July 22, 1966, in a crude semi-circle in a grassy clearing in the woods off North Lake Summit Road. Each victim suffered brutal blows to their heads. Some clues touched off rumors about the occult and Klan involvement. The victims were an interesting trio. Glass was a flamboyant showman, music lover and connoisseur of all things Oriental – and also a self-styled expert in voodoo. Shipman was a neat, meticulous gentleman who enjoyed cooking and loved music. Shumate was a woman who appears to have led a double life and who was a paradox, even to her family. Unless someone with information comes forward or there is a deathbed confession, an FBI profile may be the only way to solve the crime. “There are procedures we need to go through to do a profile on this,” said Hendersonville Police Chief Donnie Parks. “We have plenty of information to make an official request.” Police Capt. John Nicholson is filling out 37- to 38-page questionnaires on each of the victims. Questions relate to evidence, the crime scene, information on the victims, a timeline, geographical information, types of injuries, cause of death and suspect offender information, Nicholson said. After the booklets are completed, they will be sent to the Intelligence Section of the SBI in Raleigh. “They do the data entry,” Nicholson said. “The state enters the information into the FBI system.” Nicholson expects to send the booklets to the SBI this month. It is not known how soon the SBI would complete the data entry. Family members of the slain victims have been waiting 40 years for closure in the case. “I would love to see this solved,” said Linda Shirlin of Asheville, a niece of Shumate. “Everybody would like to see it solved,” said Doris Hammond of Hendersonville, cousin of victim Shipman. “Maybe something will happen now,” said Russell Glass of Asheville, cousin of Charles Glass. It’s already been 40 years,” said Cliff Shipman of Hendersonville, another Shipman cousin. “I’d like to see something done. This is ridiculous for something like this to go on for so long. I don’t understand why they didn’t get to the bottom of this to begin with.” It is not known for certain if the FBI will assign a profiler in the Behavioral Science Unit to study the case. “I have spoken to the FBI in Charlotte,” Nicholson said. “The possibility of a profile, according to them, due to the age of the case, would not be a priority and would compete against current open cases of missing persons and serial murders. They said if it was done, it might be years.” Even if an FBI profiler is unable to work the case in the near future, there are immediate steps that can be taken using the ViCAP submissions. “They can take the information and compare it to other crimes and murders in the data base to see what similarities there might be,” Nicholson said. The physical evidence related to the case has disappeared. Short of locating any of the physical evidence for testing using new technologies, the only other way of establishing the most likely suspect in the triple slaying would be an FBI profile. A profile could be used to compare the suspects in the case, ruling some in and some out.

Academy Group

There is a group of retired and active FBI profilers who will review a case, reporting their findings only to law enforcement. The Academy Group was founded by Dr. Roger L. Depue, former chief of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI National Academy at Quantico, Va. All members of the group, who charge a fee for their services, are former FBI and U.S. Secret Service Supervisory special agents who played a major role in the creation of the FBI’s National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime. Former FBI Supervisory Special Agent Steve Mardigian has discussed the case with the Times-News. The Academy Group will review the case, reporting back to local law enforcement. The cost is estimated at $5,000 to $10,000, depending on whether physical evidence can be found for new testing and whether a trip to the local area might be necessary. All family members contacted said they would be willing to contribute to hiring the group. There was a reward fund started shortly after the murders, with contributions from the Times-News, the WNC Tribune, Henderson County Board of Commissioners, Hendersonville City Council, Henderson County Chamber of Commerce, the estate of Louise Davis Shumate, and individuals. In 1970, the reward was for more than $4,000. It was at the former Northwestern Bank. Over the years, the bank merged with other financial institutions – First Union, Sun Trust and Wachovia. Bank officials cannot locate a trust fund. Without knowing the account number or a person’s name in charge of the account, it is difficult to search the records. The fund could have been returned to the state Treasury Department as unclaimed money. Representatives with the unclaimed money division of the state Treasury Department were at the N.C. Apple Festival this weekend. They were given the information on the fund. A spokesperson said staff will launch a search for the fund when they return to Raleigh. If this reward fund could be located, it could also be used to hire the Academy Group. Parks said contributions to a fund to hire the group could be sent to the Hendersonville Police Department.

Task force

Parks said he will wait on a reply from the FBI on the ViCAP report before contacting the Henderson County Sheriff’s Department about forming a task force to review the 40-year-old cold case. It is technically a Sheriff’s Department case. But the Police Department was the first investigating agency, as the case began as a missing persons’ report in the city. Shipman’s car was found abandoned in the city. During the first eight years of the case, the departments worked the case together. Sheriff Eddie Watkins could not be reached for comment. In an earlier interview, Watkins said he would not have any problem with forming a task force if the community is interested in solving the case. A task force could review all information on the case, including additional information obtained by the Times-News in a recent series on the murders. Several tips and pieces of information have been received since the series was published. Witnesses and persons who knew the victims could be interviewed. One primary suspect, a retired chiropractor in his 80s, is still living in Indianapolis. Cellmates, family members and acquaintances of other suspects could also be interviewed. Fingerprints found on Shipman’s car could be sent through the national data base and compared to youths who, in 1966, took a joy ride in the car after it was abandoned. A variety of factors hindered the initial investigation of the case, starting with inexperience and lack of training of investigators. There was not the modern technologies available today. The heat and summer storms degraded the evidence and the crime scene and a herd of investigators damaged the scene even further. Political rivalries undercut the continuity needed to stick with a case, and information on the case was scattered among rival agencies, with no coordinated effort. The fact Shipman and Glass were gay complicated the investigation. Men in the gay community feared being identified as gay and avoided interviews or claimed they had no knowledge. In today’s more open atmosphere, some of these people might be willing to talk. Forty years later, people who knew the victims and attended Glass’ exotic parties might also be willing to finally talk. “I wish someone would come forward and tell something,” said 90-year-old Neil Grissom, former Henderson County chief deputy who investigated the case. “I’d love to see it end before I die.”